Copperhead snake bites the hand that feeds him



A 30-year-old Rapid City man bitten by his poisonous copperhead snake early Sunday morning could face charges for owning a dangerous animal.



But charges are probably the last thing on his mind right now, according to a snake expert.



Bites from copperhead snakes are "extremely painful bites," Terry Phillip, reptile curator at Reptile Gardens, said. Such bites are also "notorious" for causing the loss of fingers and other extremities, he said.



Rapid City police and an ambulance were called to Holcomb Avenue and Monroe Street at 12:08 a.m. Sunday, when a man reported being bitten by his pet copperhead, according to Tarah Heupel, a spokeswoman for the Rapid City Police Department.



The man was attempting to drive himself to the hospital after the snake bit him on his left index finger, according to a call between dispatchers and police. Numbness in the arm and lightheadedness prevented him from doing so.



Heupel said the incident is still being investigated, and charges could be filed.



Kent Brown, a Rapid City animal control officer, said a city statute regarding dangerous or potentially dangerous animals makes owning a poisonous snake within city limit against the law.



"You can't have a poisonous snake ... or even a constrictor that is big enough to hurt an animal or a child," he said. "Usually, I confiscate it."



In this case, the father of the man surrendered the snake to Reptile Gardens on Sunday, Phillip said. Although Reptile Gardens already has several copperheads, Phillips accepted it, anyway, and may display it on occasion.



Copperheads are not native to South Dakota, found instead in the southeastern part of the United States. They are pit vipers, as are rattlesnakes, Phillip said. Although rattlesnake bites occasionally kill people, copperhead bites are rarely fatal, he said. But that doesn't mean they don't pack a mean punch.



Phillips knows a thing or two about the pain caused by pit viper bites. He was bitten by a rattlesnake on the pointer finger in 2006. The swelling climbed up to his neck and down to his hip.



"That was a minor bite," he said.



Nevertheless, he describes the pain as "go ahead and light your hand on fire and put the fire out with a hammer for several weeks," he said.



Dr. James Gilbert, an emergency physician with Rapid City Regional Hospital, said copperhead bites cause severe local tissue damage, oozing and swelling of the skin. They can also cause nausea, vomiting, bleeding disorders and neurologic effects.



"The tissue damage is usually the bigger problem," he said.



Copperhead bites are treated the same way rattlesnake bites are treated -- with the antivenin CroFab. The amount of antivenin used depends on the severity of the bite, but a minimum of four to six vials is usually administered, he said. Four vials of CroFab cost $3,317.



While the emergency department has CroFab on hand for pit viper bites, more exotic poisonous snake bites would require some collaboration, Gilbert said.



"I think our first call would be to Reptile Gardens," he said.



Phillip said Reptile Gardens keeps $75,000 worth of antivenin on hand, the second largest supply in the United States. They must replace the expired antivenin "every couple of years," he said. "It's one of those insurance policies you hope you never need."



Contact Lynn Taylor Rick at lynn.taylorrick@rapidcityjournal.com or 394-8414.

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